Our Story

Henrico Pierce Foundation grew out of pro bono work connected to Henrico Pierce Engineered Solutions. While serving communities through that work, our Executive Director, Jessica Evans, began exploring how to better educate and support historically marginalized, rural, and low-income communities that are too often left to navigate complex environmental, civic, and disability-related challenges on their own.

As those conversations deepened, Harley, Katie, and Cameryn shared what they were seeing in McDowell and Burke Counties, North Carolina, in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Together, the group began connecting those realities to their professional experience — for Jessica, civil and environmental engineering; for Harley, Katie, and Cameryn, direct support for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their caregivers.

Those conversations became a shared commitment. Rather than simply naming the gaps in protection, recovery, and public attention facing vulnerable communities, the four decided to build something that could respond. Henrico Pierce Foundation was created to help ensure that communities like Portsmouth, Norfolk, Newport News, McDowell and Burke Counties are not overlooked when policy decisions, disaster recovery resources, and public systems shape who gets support and who gets left behind.